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Excellent value. I was skeptical of these since they are so affordable, and I have always used the Uniball or Sakura pens, but the other reviewers were right on. These pens are amazing. You get a wide variety of colors, so chances are, at least one of them will harmonize with whatever color scheme you're working with. I didn't want to pay the $52 for the Sakura variety pack. Half of those colors I would probably never use.
These do have a good sparkle to them, but they aren't tacky. I am so glad the other reviewers raved about these pens because I had never heard of them before, and they are definitely a good investment if you're a coloring book junkie like me. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great pens, and they are making a wonderful person's life better. True story. I bought an adult colouring book for my Mom last year and was going to buy coloured pencils too, but i read reviews and there was this great group of people who all wrote about their experiences with different things, pencils, crayons, and thet gel pens.. i had no experience with gel pens at all, but I rely heavily on reviews, especially in depth, photos- attached type reviews :) I wish I knew who all I read that day, I would love to thank them and give them loads of credit. Mom *loves* the gel pens & it was so great to see this constantly busy lady actually sitting down for hours at a time and colouring this amazing book with these truly beautiful pens.
I wish I could give better detail about then... my Mom was dx'd with Alzheimer's about three months after her bday (when i bought the pens), and it hit fast. She continued to enjoy the pens throughout most of last year, & only one ran out completely - but it was used to colour almost an entire (what is the size of like lined school type paper, 11 by 14, maybe?) page, so we will need to somehow buy a refill for that one.
It's hard to leave my emotion out of the review, but everything that has given her happiness (these have by working consistently, not adding to frustration, etc) or helped her get out of bed and use that creative part of her beautiful heart & mind that is just betraying her? That makes me so very glad. We are huge book lovers and she can't even read any more b/c her short term memory went so fast, she can't remember what she read yesterday :( . But COLOURING, and having great tools to do it with? No great memory is really needed. And using the creativity center of the brain is supposed to be helpful for Alz patients.. These pens are gorgeous, I will try and scan some of her pics if I can remember, the colours are vivid and the "sparkly" ones are so fun. I have used three in my book now and just really enjoy them. I am buying her a new set now so she can have a full new set and i'll take the originals, so that is why my review took so long. I recommend them, probably not a surprise :) | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Winsor & Newton Pigment Marker Vibrant Tones 6 Set. Winsor & Newton Pigment Marker Vibrant Tones 6 Set
You really do need to use the right kind of paper with this set or simply not going to get a good result.
We did not use these on their brand of marker paper but used some Vellum paper and like the results.
Really need to store them on their side when not using them.
Actually my daughter and I use several different brands of markers for different effects in our artwork.
Took a little bit of practice since we are new to these but worth the effort to figure them out.
They have such a bold color and love the being able to blend colors with the white marker that comes with.
We will be sure to get more now that we have the hang of them and keep them in our rotation. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Well made product but handmade pastels won't fit. Removing foam pad will likeY give them enough room. Well I bought three of these after hearing a rave review on YouTube. The artist used this for her colored pencils. I ended up buying 3, as she warned that other companies selling similar brands are chePly made. These are very well made. I fit all 176 colored pencils easily into one set of drawers, I used the second to house my watercolor, and Inktense pencils and blocks, no problem. But this box is called. Pastel box and most artists use some form of hand made pastels, which get a bit chubby in the center. I couldn't close the drawers. If you wonder which pastels I'm speaking of, I have no problem with my harder pastels, nupastels, and Rembrandt's. But my Richesons, my Mount Visions, and my Diane Townsend Soft Forms, wouldn't fit. I would have crushed them. The Terrages by Diane Townsend fit well, but take up a lot of space laying flat like a pancake as they do. The one thing I may try is removing the foam padding. I really just need a smidge more space and this might do the trick but I will have to remove the separating bars to do it and then I won't have any shock absorbtion or stabilizing of the pastels. Not a huge deal as they aren't being used En Plein air. I will use a different box for this. Okay! It worked. You will have to remove the thin foam pad and they fit just fine. Whew. I will try to post pics below. I'm subtracting a star for the fact I needed to remove padding that is put there to protect fragile pastels.
All in all its a very nice product. I may need 1-2 more sets for my markers! Oh geez I have too much stuff! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great for steampunk. Ordered these keys for my steampunk costume. Ordered them on a Monday morning and had them on Wednesday. The keys are made of metal and aren't flimsy, so they are perfect for making jewelry, which I did, or for sewing onto a costume, which I did also. They are all different sizes with the biggest keys being about 3 to 3 1/2 inches long and the smallest being about 1 1/2 inch long. The only issue is that the keys come glued to the paper backing. Not with tack glue per normal but with a heavy duty glue so when you take off a key, the paper peels off with it and some remains on the back. If you are using it in a project where you won't see the back of the key, it's not a big deal. If you will be able to see the back of the key, be prepared to scrape or buy some Goo-Be-Gone to get all the paper off. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
These brushes are must-haves. I absolutely love these brushes! I am relatively new to watercolor and had tried some decent brushes when first starting off, but as my passion for this medium grows I am finding that I want to invest in more professional-grade materials. Wow! What a difference! I was so excited to find how these work for me, even being on the beginning end of painting with watercolors.
I've watched quite a lot of YouTube videos where artists have graciously shared lessons on watercolor basics and techniques. The professional artists I'm drawn to most all seem to use this line of watercolor brushes. Watercontrol and pigment manipulation is such a joy with the right tools -- I'm seeing this even early on. These three brushes are sure to be my go-to brushes as I continue to pursue this lovely art form. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
I always thought I didn't need the larger machine. But I was wrong
I have had my original Cricut for over 6 years and honestly didn't think I would ever need or use a larger machine. But Amazon had this pink Expression on sale for an awesome price last summer with 3 cartridges and I still had Christmas gift cards burning a hole in my pocket so I thought 'what the heck' I will just use it when I want to make larger things.
Well, my poor original bug has been on the shelf gathering dust ever since this pretty pink beauty arrived.
It cuts great and I am loving that I can cut more due to the larger mat.
I only have one complaint. When it is turned on, it makes a very high pitched whine. I am talking really high pitch and not very loud. My husband can't hear it but I can. It took me a few times to figure out why I was getting a headache when I was using the machine for more than a few minutes.
Now I just turn it off after I unload each mat and only turn it on when I am ready to cut again.
Other than that, no complaints. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Best Chalkboard paint. I used this porcelaine chalkboard paint on mugs. Let the first coat dry completely for 24 hrs and then applied 2nd coat on. Let it dry for another 24 hrs and bake it...voila! Can't believe I made them. The finish was so fine, I was so happy to have my morning coffee in this mug. This mug can be a good gift as well. Get a good paper tape and secure the unwanted paint areas of the mug with it before you start painting. Make sure, the areas where your mouth touch when drinking your beverage doesn't get the paint. There are so many videos on youtube that help you to figure out the do's and dont's of painting a chalkboard mug. Watch them before you start your project. This could be more fun for kids, but I have to say, I enjoyed painting the mug myself being a 25+ year old. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Cool to design with, be wary you need to purchase monthly subscription for full effect. Love it! Cuts like a dream. This was purchased for an elementary school for the staff to use. I have designed things on a computer and ipads. I use an ipad to do the actual cutting part so I don't have to connect a computer with a cord. I find it easier to design on the computer where I have a mouse.
The reason for four stars is I feel a little deceived. You have to subscribe to a monthly service to get more than a handful of free things. I did not realize this after quite a bit of research. And when it says cut anything off the internet, this is not entirely true. it is not easy to take an image off line (even a simple black and white clip art) and make the layers it would require to properly cut out an image.
I also did not realize I could use my old cartridges. I haven't tried it yet, but there is a place to put them and then I assume the key pad will come up on my ipad since there is no keypad on this cricut.
Overall I have a lot to learn, but it has a lot more cool design features than my original cricut | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
I love these letter stamps. I love these letter stamps. You can leave them as-is or color in the letters with marker or colored pencil. There's only one of each letter and number so here's what to do if you need the same letter or number repeated: when you're putting the word or number on your stamping block, put the letter down and fill in the other letters, then pick it up and put it in the new place. For example: "rested" goes from "rest" to "r*sted." Stamp with the blank space, which will now be the correct size, then go back and stamp just the missing letter. I use this stamp set again and again and it sure beats digging through letter stickers to see if I have the ones I need. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great Set, Highly Recommend. Great pigmentation for the price, and a sturdy palette that handles the abuse of being in my rucksack clunking around next to industrial materials. I am very impressed at the depth of colour of these, and the intensity of such when using very little water. I would recommend them to anyone looking for a solid quality iridescent, but not as something to directly mix wet with other pigments from other companies. If you're looking to layer, I would suggest waiting until the first application is completely dry, making them ill-suited for materials like Yupo. For what they are advertised as and for the value, however, this set gets five stars and a hug from my grad student drawing desk. :) | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Does not hold up well to repeated erasing. I've had this paper for a few months now, and I'm almost halfway through the first sketchbook. I bought this brand because of the price. Fairly decent paper, but it erodes quickly on repeated erasing. My previous sketchbooks (an off-brand from Ollie's) never had that problem. Next time, I would invest a little more in better quality paper. A few dollars of difference goes a long way.
It's okay for practice sketching, but I would not recommend any sort of serious artistry on this paper, especially if you intend to add color with multiple layers. Manga and comic style artists beware: because of the erasing problem, inking becomes less feasible the more work you put into the drawing because of the need to erase the pencil marks. Markers will bleed through unless you put something behind the page you're working on.
For most media, standard copy paper would work better. The only exception is charcoal pencils or similar; the paper does have a tooth to it, and it should be fine if you don't plan on erasing. Even then, there are better options out there, especially if you're a serious enough artist that you would take tooth into consideration.
Overall, I would expect more from a product labelled "premium" and "high quality," even at this price.
Out of my previous sketchbooks, I would recommend <a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Bonjour-Drawing-Pad-9-X-12-and-Sketch-Pad-4-X-6-Bundle/dp/B00WNF3G8I/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Bonjour Drawing Pad (9 X 12) and Sketch Pad (4 X 6) Bundle</a>. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Product Good; Emails Annoying. Update: this company sent me a THIRD email. So exhaustingly annoying. They hope I'm "enjoying my markers." Stop it already!
This is a two-pronged review: the product and the emails. Starting with the product, the markers did exactly what I needed. I wrote on a chalkboard and sprayed with hairspray to make it "permanent." Out of the 12 colors, I used 11, and 10 worked really well. One color didn't feel like it had enough "paint" in it, but it didn't bother me too much. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the gold color almost came dripping out. Whatevs. Now, the emails. Shortly after I ordered, I received an email from the company (not Amazon--but the actual company that makes the markers). It felt awkward--it was an email to make sure I followed the usage directions. It almost felt like the 21st century equivalent of a busy body shopkeeper following you around the store to make sure you use their product right. My package came, then I did my craft, packed up the markers, and stored them in in my closet. Then the second email came. With more (the same) instructions making sure I used the markers correctly and do I have any questions? Honestly, I felt like it was overkill. If you think I'm being nitpicky, imagine getting two emails for every product you've ordered on Amazon. Annoyed yet? I thought so. So was I. I specifically shop on Amazon so I don't have to make human contact and be bothered by associates. If I have a problem, I'll let you know. TL;DR--product was quite good, but the emails were annoying. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
ThE mini is perfect for A2 cards. I didn't buy my mini from Amazon, but I bought the larger one here.
I did a 3 "layer" stamp from Hero Arts perfectly the very first time I used it! I old have used a stamp positioner, but they move once you take your hand off of them. With MISTI, you can make as many cards that you want with 1 image, then go over all of them again once with the 2nd part of the layer stamp. I made 15 beautiful Flamingo invitations for a summer luau and every one was perfectly placed on the card fronts.
I simply LOVE my MISTI. I get ticked off at reviewers who never READ the product descriptions, then complain about the item.
This is a MINI MISTI and is perfect for A2 cards, the larger mini is good for the larger cards. If all you make is 5 by 7 cards then buy the larger one. If you make A2 cards then buy this one.
Simple as that. Don't give a product low stars because you didn't read the particulars on it.
Note: A2 cards are 4.25" 5.5" or 4-1/4" 5-1/2" | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Rich Vivid Colors. If you are looking for a silky smooth coloring experience these pencils have good coverage and are easy to grip. I found my hands didn't hurt as much as quickly when coloring in coloring books.
The colors are bright and vivid and are bright eye pleasing shades. The pencils don't break with normal pressure. I liked that this 48-pack has three reds, 3 yellows, 7 blues and 5 browns. People who like sketching will find this useful.
Each pencil has a number on it but I would have liked if each had a name of the color. Some of the colors I loved were the plum, violet, bronze, emerald and sapphire colored pencils.
If you get satisfaction from creating a masterpiece you will love these. I found they worked very well on good paper. Please see the pictures to observe how great these colors turned out in a mandala.
~The Rebecca Review
I received one free set of pencils for review purposes. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Fun for kids, not for Mom. These twist up bath crayons are a favorite of my children for bath time. I have purchased several sets. We have also purchased other bath crayons that have a slide up click setting for extending the crayon out but always had trouble with the kids then breaking off the crayons, with these twist up crayons we don't have that problem. The downside of this product is of bath crayons in general, it leaves a film or residue of the colors on the white tub surround. And the kids often need help "erasing" with a wash cloth. Which means mom has more work of scrubbing the tub to get it white again. These crayons would also not work well for a tile shower. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Stickers are in French. First let me start off by saying these are great quality stickers, the paper stickers are very vibrant and on nice quality paper and the clear stickers are also vibrant and very cute. The reason this item is getting two stars is because the stickers are ALL in French, except for a few stickers on ONE page that are in English.
Having bought stickers of this brand before, I was expecting a few stickers to have Korean writing on them (with the majority being English), because that's just how ONOR stickers always are, so you can imagine my surprise when I opened my package to find French stickers.
Nowhere in the description of this item does it say the stickers are French. And the pictures provided are blurry enough that you can't make out what language it's written in, only that the words are written with letters and not symbols.
I am giving this item two stars because while it is an excellent quality item, the fact that the stickers are written in another language (which was not in the description) means half of them will be unused. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great quality. I hesitated when buying this as ten bucks seems steep, but now that it arrived I am totally happy with my decision. It is a big book w/ 100 unlined pages, some cute stickers, and decent crayons. The top handle is VERY sturdy and there is a sturdy flower clasp to secure the notebook closed (I think w magnets?). There is a clear plastic pouch to store the crayons which is is connected to the spirals on the top so you never lose them. It's bigger/better than the plastic pouch you see in the photo -- that one is just to store the crayons this comes with, but the bigger pouch can fit more crayons too. This is great for car rides and restaurants. The colors are so bright and cheerful. Love it! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great value for amature use. I got these pens to paint rocks with my young children, so I definitely opted for the cheapest product. Out of 13 pens, 1 leaked pretty bad on the first use even without shaking. A few felt pretty empty but have done the job so far. We have used them now on 3 separate occasions and I feel like I've gotten my money's worth. I would've been more uptight with my children if I had spent a lot on paint pens, watching them mix the colors because they were too impatient to let each color dry (which is not long at all). If I were doing something more delicate or professional, I would get a better set. But these have been great for what I needed from them. Would buy again for the same use. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Fantastic Sketchbook. I drew in this sketchbook every day for two months. It was wonderful to work in. I have some pros and cons after working in it for a while I'd like to share with others:
Pros
-Tough. I dropped this book multiple times and used it daily. No pages fell or ripped out. It looks like new.
-Truly Bleed Proof. I used Copics, Eno Mechanical Pencils, Posca Pens, Sharpies, Copic Multiliners, Micron Pens, Uni-ball gel pens, Gelly Roll Pens, Sakura Metallic Pens, etc. and nothing bled through.
-Great Deal. You can draw 96 drawings in this if you utilize both sides of the paper. I think it's a great deal for the price.
Cons
- Paper is a very lightly tinted gray color.
- Watercolor is terrible on this paper. I didn't even use much water. I used a water brush pen. The water was eating up the paper. It didn't go through but definitely made a top layer too textured for me to continue with the painting. I tried it twice and both times this happened.
-Sketchbook does not lay flat. Ever. It wasn't a big deal for me but it may be for some individuals.
Overall, I loved this little sketchbook. I just bought another for my birthday. I can't wait to use it! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
My assumption is that this must be some older stock and they shipped it to me not knowing it was old stock and it now is useless to me. I ordered an extra tube of zinc white since I use so much white. Received it the day before Christmas and put it with my other tubes of oil paints. I went to use it this morning (Mar 18th) and when I took the top off of the paint I noticed that I could not squeeze the tube hard enough for the paint to come out. The tube feels as hard as a rock. My assumption is that this must be some older stock and they shipped it to me not knowing it was old stock and it now is useless to me. My suggestion is to check your material as it comes in and DO NOT assume you are getting fresh material. Since it is past the 30 days for a return I am out the money. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
My New Best Friend. I did my research before I bought my first die cutter (so I can't compare to any others). There were a few reviews that said there was going to be a learning curve with this one. I didn't feel that there really was. I worked with both the SD card and the eCraftShop Pro Program and both were pretty straight forward. What I love is the ability to cut on just about any paper and vinyl. One tip though, if you are having trouble with ripping on card-stock (i.e. Office Max), I feed two pieces in together--only the top one cuts (play around with your setting; between 6 and 5). It really depends on how intricate your design is. You won't go wrong with this eCraft, I promise you!! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
No! Stay away. Oh no....
I didn't even take it out of the box before deciding I would return this..this...thing...this monstrosity.
It is literally a dude's head attached the a barbie's body.
What went wrong? This thing is NOT what is shown on the box OR in the photos on Amazon. It is completely wrong. The breasts are much perkier and look "fake". The image shown on Amazon and on the box have a much softer, more feminine face, with natural breasts. I was excited to get this and now I can't even use it, it's not pleasing to look at.
I guess it could work for you if you need it for posing and don't care about anatomically correct, but this is not a collectible or attractive figure, all wrong. See photos for more... | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Came all jumbled up and broken. They came completely destroyed! Colors all mixed together. I haven't used them yet so will update my review after I do, but for now Im really not impressed with packing that allowed this to happen! So giving it 2 stars for now, with the hope that they work for what I need them too!
*edit: lost a star because after using them, I was highly unimpressed. I do doll customization and the lighter chalk pastels wouldnt show up on the dolls at all, and all of them (dark and light) were so powdery that they wouldnt stick to the doll. They would just turn to dust and blow right off! Im guessing if you were to use these on actual pastel paper, the powderiness would actually help, but not on dolls. Sadly, I had to send them back and this time did a lot more research and went for a more expensive brand. Hoping they work better. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
The Best of the Best. As fairly new student of watercolor, I must say that it is an honor to own such a fine painting instrument as this Da Vince Series 35 brush. It is handmade of the highest grade materials and a beautiful object to behold. This size seven--which is said to have been the favorite brush of watercolor enthusiast Queen Victoria--is perfectly balanced, holds a great deal of color, and is extremely versatile. This brush tapers to an incredibly fine point with which the painter is able to make thin, precise lines. A wide wash of color is also easy to make using the sides of the brush, such as background skies and greenery. In fact, it is possible to create an entire watercolor painting of great expanse and detail using only this brush.
First made in 1866 for Queen Victoria, this series of watercolor brushes is world-renowned for quality and usefulness. If it's good enough for the Queen, it's certainly good enough for me. I am thrilled with this watercolor brush, so say the least. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Bold and vibrant colors (11 out of 12. The bold colors and dual tip are what truly makes these markers unique. The dual tip aspect also adds points for durability.
PACKAGING
I received this product in a timely manner, and all but one marker was in good condition.
COLORS
Out of 12 markers, 11 of the colors were vibrant and bold. The color that didn't show up as boldly was the yellow. It was also much drier than the pother markers.
Other than that, these markers are great for many artistic projects (posters, drawing, etc.).
*I received this item at a discounted or free price for evaluation purposes in return for my unbiased review, which I have provided here. I do not have a relationship with the seller or company, and have not been compensated for my review. The opinions stated here are my own and based on my personal use of the product. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Highly recommend. This is my second power press. My first one lasted over 3 years and I pressed over a thousand shirts on it for my business. I highly recommend this name brand. It is reasonably priced and works great! My only issue with my first power press is eventually over time, it wore out. One day I turned it on to start heating up and a few minutes later I noticed it was getting hot faster than normal. After a few more minutes it had went over the temperature I had it set at and it kept getting hotter. I don't know much about the mechanics of presses but I'm guessing whatever regulates the temperature had went bad. So since my heat press was several years old and had paid for itself time and time again I went ahead and retired it. I bought another one and I love it. It took a little longer than expected to get here but overall I received a week after I ordered. Highly recommend this item. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Jacquard Tee Juice Fabric Markers. I was excited to purchase these markers after seeing them recommended on a craft themed blog. I was hoping to use them to write book quotes on scarves and t-shirts. Upon trying to use them on a summer weight cotton blend scarf they bled terribly making the words unrecognizable; then I noticed that there was also smudging all over the sides and end of the markers. Upon further inspection I noticed that the ink had leaked out the back end of the markers. There was also evidence of the markers leaking on the inside of the box. I am definitely returning these, and will stick with good old fashioned Sharpie markers! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Funky, Sort of a Mod/Vintage Mix. I actually did see this blue SmashBook in the store and didn't go for it right away. Later, I regretted not buying it and picked it up on Amazon. The graphics are a mod, vintage, funky mix. They're borderline "ugly" and won't suit everybody, so you might want to go with the pink nostalgic Victorian one first. This one is more geared to guys than girls. There's a page with men playing some kind of racket game, a kind of goofy carnival guy in a top hat with a chain around his neck. Not everyone will like it, and it's more funky than retro. A girl could put in pics of her boyfriend or son with his car, his sports stuff, etc. I put my book to great use: really old "vintage" pictures of my brothers and sisters, funny photos and vacation memories, weird mementoes and scraps that will probably mystify anybody but me. I ended up with some cute themes. The pouch for the pen is kind of weird. When the book is filled, it will just be an odd pouch on the side of the plastic cover ~ I'll have to figure out something to put in there. I didn't notice "acid free" anywhere on the label. Also, the black logo on the bottom-right side of the cover and on the spine are there to say. If you don't like that, you'll have to cover it up. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
It was working fine until it died. It's a quiet compressor which is nice. And I really wanted it to work.
The pressure regulation wasn't as nice as I was hoping. Turn it on, the compressor pumps the pressure to max, then turns off. When the pressure drops below the minimum, compressor comes back on and pumps it back up to max. No problem. The "pressure adjustment" knob causes the pressure to bleed out before it reaches the max. Which means the compressor will run continuously. Not good.
OK, no problem - use an external regulator with pressure gauge and set that to whatever you want. This unit does have a tiny pressure tank inside it so the compressor can stay off for longer. That was working great....until it died.
I don't think the compressor actually ran for more than one hour total. It would run for maybe a few minutes when I first turned it on, then less than a minute each time it cycled. I wasn't using that much air so it would be off for quite a few minutes in between.
I think I just got a lemon - part of the risk when buying the really cheap stuff. Next time I'll spend a little more and get something with a decent warranty that will last. If you get lucky and get one that lasts, this would be a nice little compressor. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Excellent Construction; Long Lasting Quality - Works Well with Acrylics and Oil-Based Media. These are an excellent set of synthetic brushes that feel like, even smell like, and carry paint as if they were genuine horsehair.
I tried a couple of different projects using this set of brushes, which arrive beautifully packaged in a gift box, wrapped in a ribbon and in their own carrying case. To describe the construction of the brushes, there is a good weight balance to the handles, long metal clamps that support the bristles, and the bristles are adhered expertly in a way that didn't leave me picking bristles off the canvas and from the paint. That alone is worth the price, as I've run into many brands from brick and mortar shops in which the synthetic bristle components tend to fall out and get gunked up in the media I'm using, which is super annoying. I know it's an investment to get better brushes, but the proof is in the sheer difference of using the bargain brand and something mid-range. These are definitely worth every penny in that respect.
The brushes allow ample loading of paint, whether it's acrylic or oil-based, and apply smoothly with little texture. Not to say you can't acheive a texture if you are mixing your paint with other media to achieve that, but the brushes themselves are able to apply the paintly very smoothly on their own.
Whether I was painting a vase with acrylics for a craft project, or using my oils upon canvas to paint a small swamp at sunset, I was pleased with the quality of the brushes, the variety of brushes, and the overall experience, including easy rinsing (these bristles do stain a bit, which is really a moot point for me, though some people want to know for some reason or another).
These are a great set for a hobbyist or entry-level art student, crafters or a back-up set for professionals alike. I'll state again how excellently presented they are in the gift box; would make an excellent high-quality gift for a painting enthusiast or student! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Terrible for Coloring With - Great for Sharpening. If these re the premium pencils, then I would hate to see the economy ones.
Bought these for my niece for her birthday, after a recent trip home I asked her how the pencils were and she was sheepish and said ok. It was only when I spoke to her parents that they told me they had been terrible. All the lead inside the pencils was cracked and every time she tried to sharpen them she lost the lead. It was so bad in fact that they just put them in a box and haven't used them since getting tired of sharpening.
Moral of the purchase, if you live to sharpen pencils, these are the mack daddy pencils to get. If you want to use them to color and be artistic, probably better just getting some from crayola. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Perfect for designing your very own charms/embellishments. Pay attention to the size, if you are measuring-challenged like me. After a little online research, trying to figure out what the "25" size meant, I found out it's about an inch. But, I was still surprised upon seeing them in person. LOL!
I recommend checking out the Ephiphany Crafts website for more information and ideas.
Everything is so easy. You slide your image into the punch window, center it, press the epoxy square on top of your image, close lid, and punch! I can now create/design all of my own embellishments to go with my journaling or mixed media. Plus, making charms from pics of my granddaughters is awesome!
The punch tool also comes in so many shapes, which I hope to eventually purchase one day. I totally recommend this product! Hope this helps!
Oh! I read that the epoxy doesn't yellow over time. And another plus is not having to deal with messy resins; it's already done for you. And, my images came out crystal clear.
To give idea of size, that's a pencil eraser. Sorry, didn't have a ruler handy. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
As expected, looks good. Dot card arrived promptly, all the dots look sufficient for testing (some more so than others but I didn't get any rings or inadequate dots). As others have noted, mine also came with a sticker over Rose Madder Genuine.
UPDATE:
I have now wet all dots on all the cards and am very impressed by most of the colors. Some definitely preformed better than others in that they were easy to activate and there was a lot of paint to create a representative tone on the page, others were much more difficult to create a good mass tone. For instance, I had a lot of trouble with cobalt violet, ultramarine red, cobalt green pale, duochrome cactus flower, and duochrome hibiscus. That could be as much a property of the paint as the amount I got on the card in that those colors just don't create robust mass tones.
(One thing I found was really helpful was to use an eye dropper with clear water to prewet the dots just before I started creating each mass tone.)
Other paints were a surprise in that they have iridescent or sparkly properties but aren't on the iridescent page like bronzite genuine, burnt bronzite genuine, and red fuchsite genuine, sugilite genuine, kyanite genuine, amethyst genuine and fuchsite genuine.
Some paints were simply gorgeous when wet and significantly changed in a less awesome way once dried (perylene violet), and others were not that impressive wet or that I never would have considered before but now I'm thinking I might purchase (Mayan blue genuine, rose of ultramarine)
These cards were also helpful in determining which paints I will purchase when I was unsure which I would like better (Quin. Gold vs Quin. Deep Gold). Also, I'm 99% sure I have no use for the duochrome, iridescent and interference paints.
Overall I would say that these cards are invaluable in helping me see which paints will be the best in expanding my palette. Now I'm wondering how I get get similar cards for Winsor and Newton and M Graham. :-p | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Useless gadget. I can't believe I keep getting fooled by this company! I've purchased a returned a pinwheel maker, and had to get new instructions for the envelope punch board because the information printed on the product was wrong. For this product, adjustability is its downfall - you can take out a section to make a smaller bag, but the remaining pieces won't stay together - the pins look sturdy, as does the cutting edge, but it is very slippery and not effective. The instructions are pretty much nonexistent, and the online tutorials aren't helpful - they are of the "Gee, isn't this wonderful?" variety. I think I'm just going to have to make the decision to take We R Memory Keepers off of any shopping lists. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Perfect for Artist Grade Pencils. SImply great for my artist-grade colored pencils, charcoals, pastels, ballpoints, you name it! They look great, are surprisingly slim, and rather durable (so-far). I have Faber Castell Polychromos, Prismacolor (Premier, watercolor, pastel, verithin), Derwent (charcoal, artists, art grip,tinted charcoal, pastel, watercolour, and coloursoft). As stated, each of these pencils fit 3 to a slot. The Derwent tend to be a bit thicker than most pencils I've come across, but they still fit 3 to a slot. Even Prismacolor Premiers, which are noted for fragility, slide in and out of the slots easily without any breaks. Allows all your pencils to be well organized, accessible, and secure - all while in a classy case.
I've bought three of the Brown 120 cases and I do not regret it one bit. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Gorgeous colors. This vinyl is fantastic. I love using vinyl on my signs. I constantly am using my Cricut to cut vinyl and have used several different types of vinyl. My usual preference is chalkboard vinyl because it is thick. This is a permanent self-adhesive vinyl. It is premium vinyl sheets. Each sheet is about 12 by 12 inches. This is perfect because it matches my Cricut mat perfectly. It is perfect for home decor, signs, letters, banners, striping, details, window graphics, and many more things. It is easy to peel off when weeding. This vinyl adhesive sticks into place immediately once you put it in contact. I couldn't believe how many different colors there were. This is a set of 72 sheets.. They are all types of colors and different variety of styles. You get a variety of glossy, matte, and metallic colors. You also have every color of the rainbow possibly. There's an extra 12 sheets included. With a combination of 60 glossy matte, and metallic sheets along with the 12 free sheets. That equal 72 vinyl sheets in this package. This palette is amazing. On the back of the sheets are your square tiles to cut straight. You also have a wonderful direction sheet that will tell you how deep to cut with your blade. I highly recommend this set to any crafter out there. This is an excellent variety.
I receive this item at a discounted rate in exchange for my honest, unbiased review. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Rich, Vibrant Paints. I really enjoy these paints. The pans are highly pigmented and wet easily. The weak points are that they are not artist grade (not lightfast as far as I know)and for that reason there is not much information about the paints available; I have even contacted Caran d'Ache, but they have not responded. Also, in the 8 pan set, I would prefer something more like burnt sienna or burnt umber or pretty much anything (another blue, green, yellow or a violet) to the gray pan that is included, also a larger white tube gouache would be useful for those who don't have white gouache on hand. The opacity of the pans is pretty good, although I would say that the paints are somewhere between watercolor and gouache in regard to opacity (they are opaque, but not as opaque as higher end tube gouache). Again, the pigment is surprisingly rich and smooth, not at all gritty like a homemade pan gouache can be (tube gouache that is dried and then reconstituted). These are perfect for a sketchbook. I definitely recommend this set. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Gorgeous design but yucky clear plastic. Let me start by saying I LOVE the graphics on the dividers. Looking at the pictures, it wasn't obvious to me that these are clear plastic. So the design doesn't really stand out at all :(
These would look SO MUCH better if they were real paper that had some sort of protective coating. Heck, I'd even prefer some sort of plastic sleeve with the design/tab inserted. It's a shame that the design is so pretty, but it really gets lost once you put it into your album.
I'm not returning them because it isn't worth the postage to send back. I will probably give them away or they will go in the trash. Not representative of what I expected compared to the great quality of other products by Project Life. Disappointed. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
22 Years Old, And They Still Work. A story about these pens: The office I am in has been handed over several times since the late 1980s. While cleaning and sorting through the cabinets, I found a box of these markers, with a note on the outside of the package: Date Mfg: 3/94 Date Reinsp: 3/96. Though the hard plastic outer case had been opened, the pens themselves hadn't been opened--they were individually wrapped in plastic. I laughed. No WAY were these pens going to work. Surely the paint had dried up over the course of the 22 years they had been sitting there. Nope. I shook the black pen, dabbed the felt tip onto a surface to get the paint flowing, and it worked just fine. I haven't opened up the others but I'm confident they too will work just fine.
These pens are pretty much THE thing if you're looking for a pen to put a durable paint marking on hard surfaces like TAT boxes, gun cases, tool boxes, surfaces that otherwise defy being written on, etc. It's a nice bonus that they won't turn to junk in your drawer just because you don't use them every year. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
A PLEASANT SURPRISE. I have to admit I was holding my breathe a little when I ordered this sharpener for my Prismacolor Premier Pencils. I spent a pretty penny on them and I was VERY disappointed with my inability to sharpen them with a conventional (manual) sharpener. I suppose I thought if I spent a little extra for my colors they should almost sharpen themselves, lol. This sharpener is INCREDIBLE!!! Easy and smooth, and no need to use much pressure. Be aware of the crayon portion though. If it is over sharpened it will snap right off next to the blade. It's like anything else, the more you use it the better the point becomes. I have no problem recommending this product. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Super easy to use, never clogs, can spray unthinned latex paint. I went from an inexpensive Badger single-action external-mix brush to this. It's like going from a skateboard to a BMW.
I had absolutely no problem getting used to the dual action lever. It was like I had used it all my life. Very intuitive. Three or four test sprays and I was off to the races.
I was doing detail work on seven theatrical flats - these things are each the size of a sheet of plywood, and there were seven of them! I painted all over these flats in multiple colors (I'm glad I had also ordered a box of a dozen extra paint bottles). This brush could handle whatever I threw at it. My index finger cramped up a couple of times after hours of spraying - I figured out how to work the lever with my thumb with good results. The width of the spray is controlled mainly by the distance to the workpiece. I could easily spray pencil-thin up to about two inches wide. Any further and the results are not very well defined (which can sometimes be good).
My old brush would constantly clog (the paint would dry at the tip of the atomizer nozzle if I didn't spray for a couple of minutes), and I had to adjust the height of the atomizer nozzle every time I changed paints (because they would never be the same viscosity). It was usually trial and error to get the height correct (mostly error). This brush doesn't even HAVE an adjustment - it just works with whatever you put in it. It will even spray latex paint unthinned, but not as well as mixing in a little water.
The only time it clogged was when I sprayed some old paint that had some gloopy bits. The brush is not really designed for easy cleaning. You can clean the nozzle easily enough, but not the part between the hose connector and the nozzle (where the gloopy bits of paint got stuck). I had to soak it in that stuff that you use to clean dried latex paint off of paintbrushes and then spray some of that stuff through the brush. It has never clogged when I was spraying clean paint.
When using it in gravity-feed mode you don't use a bottle - you put paint directly into that little cone-shaped cup (usually with an eyedropper). It doesn't hold much, and you will go through it pretty quickly if you use much air.
My only complaint is that the paint bottles are glass. I was forced to make an exception to my "no glass allowed in my garage" rule. Using clear PET plastic would make more sense.
Having a set of cleaning brushes will make cleanup a lot faster - especially cleaning the tube that feeds the paint from the jar. It takes a long time to wash paint out if you are just running water through it. Since you only have one of those tube/lids, you will clean it a lot if you are spraying multiple colors (as I was doing). Cleaning brushes will make that job take seconds instead of minutes. You might be able to get by with pipe cleaners. The airbrush itself is easily cleaned by just spraying water (which is driven at a much higher pressure).
What a fantastic tool! Expensive and worth it!
(If you find my review helpful, please "like" it - thanks.) | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
No stopper in the black ink. Ruined Christmas. I was very very disappointed with this set I bought it for my daughter for Christmas. We read the instructions and went to try it out for the first time, the seller told us to shake the ink bottles before use and the black ink DIDN'T have a stopper in it and it was slightly open. We didn't know at the time and the ink went everywhere, on the rug on the walls and on us and our brand new Christmas pajamas. We spent hours cleaning up the ink and now my daughters too afraid to use the set. This was a very bad experience for us and we used most our Christmas cleaning it up I'm extremely disappointed, we don't even have anymore black ink because it spilled everywhere. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Paint faux suede beautifully, I'm using this for everything at her. This stuff worked amazingly I'm going to use Angelus Leather paint for literally everything I ever paint ever again on any costume ever!!!!! First thing to say is that I couldn't get a straight answer anywhere on whether this worked to paint faux suede, but I decided to use it anyway as I had one week until Comic-Con and I was running out of options to paint my knee high boots. And I'm here to tell you that it paints faux sued beautifully!!!!! That being said I did not have any issue with the suede texture disappearing on my boots which it definitely does when you paint them. It goes from being a faux suede texture to a faux leather texture and it took about 4 coats for me to paint them fully with 20min in between each coat to let it dry fully. I wore them all day at San Diego Comic con with no issues, no cracking or peeling and I've worn them a couple times since with them maintaining they're perfect finish. All in all I'm super super happy with this paint and I will definitely use it again. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
SUPER BRIGHT COLORS. I bought this compact travel box with intentions of removing the included pigments and adding my own from tubes. The rectangles are glued so well doing so would have destroyed what appears to be a blow molded interior. I think "sketchbox" is an accurate name. If you are a plein aire artist and wish to get a quick impression of your area, this is fantastic. The WATERBRUSH is particularly nice. The addition of the little black flower head makes it the easiest to fill of any I have ever used. The layout of the box is great. Many have said they don't know what the sponges are for or they don't use them. They are not meant for cleaning. The best way to clean the brush is to squeeze out plain water then wipe. The sponges are if you are working wet in wet, after you put the initial water on the page, you wipe the brush so that you can go back and mop up any excess water. So the four stars is for two reasons: cheaply made interior, and, the colors themselves. Since they don't actually say what's in them with pigment numbers, I am inclined to believe they are made with dyes and therefore not lightfast. Think of radiant liquid watercolor. Think of Holbein Opera Rose and Bright Violet. They are beautiful colors I use myself. They are fun to paint with but the colors can fade. Best option for these is sketchbooks and journals where the colors can be out of the light and protected. Hopefully when I finish using the color I will be able to replace them with tube paints. How I wish they would make this exact box in metal, even at double the price! Removable individual cups would be a super plus! I like the finger hook on the back too. Box design is ingenious. I made the chart on Arches 140 cold press. One coat with a flat brush. I labelled according to the contents listed on the side of the box. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Extremely durable. I have to say this paper costs more than most but I recently saw a pastel artist online actually scrub off an old painting with a toothbrush and tape it flat until it dried and it worked. Of course I had to try this for myself. I took a pastel painting that I was less than thrilled with and scrubbed it off under water with an old toothbrush. Taped it flat. Put some books on top and the next day the paper was like new again. There was a ghost of an image including a graphite line drawing that wouldn't come off, but it is totally good enough to put another underpainting and painting on top of. I am very pleased. No one wants to screw up an expensive piece of paper like this. It's great to know it CAN be reused when I do mess one up. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Not recommended. . I was really excited to finally get one of these plates. I bought mine from a local craft store with a coupon. I used it on a few intricate dies for the couple months I had it and it seemed to work pretty well. Then it came time to make my Christmas cards. I needed approximately 100 die cuts for my cards. I used 4 different dies (25 cuts from each) and by the time I finished all my cutting, my dies were splintering metal from the cutting edges. The dies still cut but were no longer clean cutting the edges of the cardstock. A recipient of my cards would probably not even notice but I'm a perfectionist and hold my projects to a high standard and I CAN TELL. Not to mention, the splinters of metal didn't just fall off of the die but rather stabbed me in the fingers while handling them between cutting the pieces. It's kind of like being stabbed by sewing needles. The most upsetting thing about all of this is that these 4 dies originally cost me about $80 and I can't be spending that kind of money replacing them. If you're a papercrafter you know how expensive this hobby can be. I feel this product should've warned of the possibility that this could happen to a single die that is repeatedly cut using the precision plate. I have never had this happen to any of my other dies using the acrylic cutting plates and I have owned and used my Big Shot on a regular basis for about 4 years now. My precision plate has literally sat unused in a drawer for over a year now. I do not recommend this product. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
It's good, very good, except for one thing. It's a good thing it comes with an extra blade, so I will be able to replace the one I will eventually lose since it just falls out of the cutter. Look at it and it will fall out. Sneeze. Use or not, it will fall out. I like the flip out ruler which helps a bit with greater accuracy. I like the fact the bar lifts up to clean out the little slivers that accumulate. Very nice portable trimmer.
I wonder if it is designed to fall out. Oddly, I have difficulty getting it back in each time! But I do.
Very handy for small amounts of paper or card stock and quite portable (except you need to tape the cutter blade to it, or carry it separately somehow, and not get cut!
I gave it 4 stars, because I doubt the alternatives are as good at cutting. At least not the similar ones I have looked at in stores, that cost more. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Love This Line of Products. At this point, I have almost all of the Inka Gold colors on hand for my art projects. Whether working on paper, polymer clay, or really anything, they provide a beautiful, rich 'metallic' color that has depth and richness to it. And, they are sooo easy to work with and clean up easily. Since these have a 'whipped' butter consistency, it's easy to control where you put the color - and you can use your fingers or a brush or sponge to apply the color. The colors do dry fast, so when you're blending them, you need to work quickly and in small areas.
Also, they are water-soluble which makes for easy clean-up and a few drops of water 'refreshes' the product if the top layer in the tub dries up a bit, and of course, clean-up with water is very easy. Although they're water-soluble, I've found that if I put some in a small paint tray and add water to 'lighten' the color, the metallic does tend to separate from the pigment color so it's better to used the product as it is intended straight out of the tub.
But ohhh, the gorgeous effects that can be created! I highly recommend this to any artist or crafter! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great brushes for professionals and beginners. Yesterday my order for Pro Arte Plus Set W2 arrived. I was very much skeptical about the quality of the brushes. So thought of giving it a shot. For my surprise, the brushes were beyond my expectations.. I tried all the 5 brushes with different brands of water colors like Winsor & Newton, Pelikan and Grumbacher. With all media it worked well. The brushes are strong and firm. Hold enough colors with pointed tip. I am sure they will last for long. It was a great buy for that cheap price. Initially, I was planning to order Da Vinci Red Sable brushes. But decided to try these Pro Arte brushes as the price was cheap. It was not a bad decision. Soon I will buy more brushes from them for my kids too. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
DOES THE JOB I BOUGHT IT FOR. I suppose that there are many, many uses for this nice little elliptical template but I purchased this one for one use and one use only. I draw and paint miniature reproductions of various fishing lures and have been working on a rather large and detailed collage of the things. Many of the lures and flies I draw and paint have bodies quite similar to the elliptical shapes on this particular template. In addition to the bodies of the lures I have been drawing I needed a template which would allow me to precisely draw the showing portion of the fish hook on each of the drawings/paintings.
I am delighted to report to you that this little bit of plastic serves the purposes for which I use it perfectly. I used quite a number of templates in and with my drawing projects and this one has been a very nice addition even though I personally use for limited purposes.
Like another reviewer though, I found that the material it is made from is quite thing (which is an advantage in some ways, but if you use this thing you need to be quite careful as it does not take much pressure from the point of the pencil to move the thing...it takes getting use to and takes care in using.
I will say; again on a personal note, that I have a very large collection of these things and have had many of them for years and years and it has been some time since I bought a new one of any sort. I went into sticker shock when I bought this thing (I paid the same price at a local art store), which is a pretty good sign that I am getting old. Hey, I still morn the absence of the .05 cent bottle of Coke!
Anyway, this is a nice template and does the job I bought if for.
Don Blankenship
The Ozarks | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
These markers were fantastic! I used them to draw on porcelain ornaments . These markers were fantastic! I used them to draw on porcelain ornaments this past Christmas as gifts for everyone! I used these in combination with some oil based Sharpie markers. These were cheaper than sharpie with better quality in my opinion. It did take a bit longer to get the marker to start flowing with ink. *shake, stab on paper, repeat*
I capped the markers when done, it felt like it should push in a bit more to the marker, but as you can see by the manufacturer picture, there is a bit of space between the body and the cap. I was worried they wouldn't fully seal and would dry out. I went back to them two weeks later to do some last minute ornaments and they started working right away. No drying, no fussing, YAY! Highly recommended. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Waste of money. ** UPDATE: I was contacted by the seller who saw my review and said there was probably a defect. They said they are sending me a new set. If I receive a new set I will again update my review.**
There are certain items I always buy brand name and colored pencils, crayons, and markers and among those items. However, I couldn't pass up these beautiful colors for this price. I should have passed it up. They just keep breaking and when I go to sharpen them it takes several times because the points keep breaking off. It earned 2 stars because there are so many beautiful shades, but the set will only last me a week or so; I'm laid up at home after foot surgery and coloring is keeping me occupied....there won't last long at all. Buy crayola or another major brand. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Disappointed. These pencils are not what I expected. Some of the lighter colors do not cover well. There are 120 pencils with no name or number on them. The color on the pencil sometimes is slightly off from the color of the lead so it's hard to choose a color. I decided to make a color chart for the 1st 30 pencils to see if that would help. The colors are so close it's hard to distinguish one from the other. Some of the colors were out of order. It's impossible to keep these colors straight. The box is a nice concept but I color on the sofa and the box is too long for the sofa to hold. You could cut the sections apart but I much prefer a metal box. If you don't get the plastic closed just right the pencils start falling out. These are awkward to use. I wanted to like them but after all the great reviews I'm disappointed in the pencils, | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Unique watercolor brush pens. I watched some videos showing how to paint with these brush pens and was so intrigued I had to buy them. I have no experience with watercolor painting and just wanted to try something new instead of coloring with pencils. I started out using a regular coloring book to experiment with, but found it hard to blend the colors with the thin paper quickly absorbing the ink. Tried a book with thicker paper and had more success and fun playing with the color and getting a feel for how to use these very different pens. After investing in some watercolor paper and a coloring book printed on watercolor paper, I'm really enjoying the easy of painting with these markers. The colors are vibrant and the extremely fine brush tip is great for the finest details. The set of 36 has a good range of colors. I would like to have more blues though. Should have bought the larger set! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
A small item sand blaster. I've used an air eraser and larger sand blasters before. Factor into the cost a full face filter mask, a blasting cabinet and a tank compressor, some repair tools and more abrasive. This is best for small items,say 8 inches and smaller, I've used it to strip and prep brass and plastic models. I tried to use it for a stove manifold cleaning.... NOT. Use gloves, trust me when I say abrasive up the fingernails hurts. Very fine dust is created, protect your face and lungs, use full face protection. The included paper filter really not good to use more than once and it has no eye protection. The included volume of abrasive is way too little, find a 5 pound amount, and the same grit; a jewelry supply store or Amazon might have it. If you have a cabinet with hard to empty recesses your grit will disappear there. the tool: easy to operate, it's a single action airbrush, be sure to keep all seals wiped off. Be sure your compressor will support sustained 90 psi. I'd also get a small adjustable wrench, it's way better than the included wrench. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great precision and crisp color. This set is both affordable and pleasantly semi-professional for novices and practiced artists alike. I am able to use these markers for fairly fine detail, down to spaces of about 1 millimetre in diameter with good accuracy. Being a newbie in the felt-tip coloring world, I didn't know to expect bleeding of adjacent colours into one another, so don't make the mistake I did and be sure to wait for one color to dry before coloring next to it if you do not intend to blend!
This set includes a great variety of colours perfect for outdoor scenes as there are a great number of green and blue shades to choose from. I recommend this set to anyone who wants to venture into coloring with felts as these markers will not disappoint. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
So glad we found these crayons. We started with this 8 color bag of these soy based crayon rocks at the suggestion of a place in town that gives art classes for kids and have been so happy with them. The reason these are so good for our household is that these crayons force the child to hold them with their finger tips, they cannot hold them with a fist, and this is exactly what we have been hoping for to help train our 4 year old left handed child to hold writing utensils (and eating utensils) correctly. When given a regular crayon/colored pencil/marker she holds it with her fist and cannot color well within the lines or draw very fine, but with these crayons she has to use her finger tips and she can be more precise with her coloring and drawing. She notices the difference and wants to learn the correct way to hold things because she is so frustrated that she cannot draw/write as well as her right handed twin. So at her request we have now graduated to the 16 color bag. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED product. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
LOVE. These are awesome! I was unsure if they would be of the same quality as some of the other ones on Amazon, but they looked identical to the more expensive ones, and I decided to take a risk. I am so glad I did, because I paid less than half of what I would have paid for the more expensive, likely identical product! I tested these chalkboard sticker labels to adhere to mason jar glasses and use them for drinking glasses for my upcoming wedding. They stay on perfectly, even when the glass is sweating and you handwash (I don't plan to try the dishwasher)! I am not sure how easy they are to take off, because I want to keep them on! If you are using these for the same purpose I am, you NEED a waterproof chalkboard paint pen - a normal one won't do! Try Simply Remarkable Waterproof Chalk Pen | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Nice gift for a more experienced artist in the family. You really need a good set of color pencils for them to look like the pictures on the box. I would guess a box of 36 or 64 prismacolor pencil set would do, Crayola twistable pencils pack of 30 are a superior color pencil as well, very pigmented. It has to be the crayola twistable pencils, make sure you're not getting the twistable crayons. You can also use watercolor pencils. I would recommend a box of 36 or 64 pencil set of watercolor pencils. Otherwise you would feel a little disheartened about the outcome of the coloring. I don't think this is a set for beginners, you would need some experience with shading. Or, don't go by the color chart on the box and find pictures of other things similar to the ones in the picture and use that. They are very beautiful drawings, I almost was afraid to color over it. Lovely and sweet pictures on what seems to be 90 lb. watercolor board, the bumpy kind. I think its a good deal for the lovely pictures, and 12 pencil set that comes with it. I would also recommend having a good pencil sharpener. Nice set for rainy days. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
great concept. Crayola Crayon Carver
The box contains:
Base Crayon Carver unit with built in storage.
40 customization tiles alphabet letters and icons.
Eight count Crayon pack in standard size.
Two crayon wrapper rippers.
You will need:
Four AA batteries.
How to:
Use of the Crayola Crayon Carver is easy use and clean up.
After ripping the wrapper off of a crayon. Secure the crayon into the carving area and close the lid. Choose up to nine tiles for a custom message or design. Trace over the tiles a few times to make a nice clean etching line on the crayon.
The Description:
Send colorful, custom-carved crayon notes to friends and family! it's easy, safe and fun! includes 32 tracing tiles, 8 Crayola crayons
Enables kids to "make their mark' with cool designs and messages on Crayola crayons
Motorized for easy customization; Easy tracing process yields a great outcome ; Carve designs into jumbo or standard crayons!
Built in storage ; Easy clean up with removable shavings box
I gave this product to my granddaughter, 5 year old Kloee. She was a little young for the toy but we will give it another try soon.
The best part is how easy it is to use and the cleanup is so easy. You can carver messages into crayons and send use them to send little messages. The concept is unique and interesting. I had fun with it. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Lots of beautiful Asian Motifs and Caligraphy. This stamp has alot of beautiful asain designs and motifs. I haven't seen too many asian influenced stamps with a large background stamp included. The bamboo and cherry blossoms are my favorite and I have used them several times. I purchased this block along with <a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Inkadinkado-Clear-Acrylic-Stamp-Block-Extra-Large-6-x-6/dp/B005ZHUIFA/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Inkadinkado - Clear Acrylic Stamp Block - Extra Large - 6 x 6</a>. They work well together. Because of the block design the large background stamp fits perfectly or I could arrange the other stamps together to create a "single" stamp. You must take care the first time removing the stamps from the clear sheet it is attached to. The stamps are adhered pretty tightly. If you remove them too quickly you may rip the stamp. After removing for the first time, all subsequent usage is fairly easy. Don't throw away the plastic sheet it comes with because you can re-use them to store your stamps. The stamps clean-up nicely with just a little warm water and drying. The stamps retain there "stickiness" even after several washes. I've used these stamps in my mixed media art work, thank-you and birthday cards, ATCs, etc. The simple asian designs and beautiful caligraphy are perfect for many types of applications. I used the following ink after researching a little online: <a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Tsukineko-Full-Size-Memento-Fade-Resistant-Inkpad-Tuxedo-Black/dp/B002GB237E/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Tsukineko Full-Size Memento Fade Resistant Inkpad, Tuxedo Black</a>. It worked well for me but any ink you typically use would probably work just as well. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Very good for the price. The colors are bright and vivid, and apply smoothly to any type of paper. The main complaint I have is that the felt brush ends started splitting fairly quickly. I've had them about two months and more than half of them have already frayed significantly enough that after I write or color with them, I have to fill in with the fineliner tip. Part of this is because these are my first brush pens and I've never done calligraphy with brushes like this, so it took me a bit of practice to remember to NOT hold them like normal pens and push down on them straight-on; instead I had to get used to the slanted grip. Now that I've mastered that, they seem to be lasting better.
As for the fineliner tips themselves, some of them seemed a bit dry and I had to apply extra pressure and go over lines again to get the original color because they were so faded. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Lots of possibilities with these sheets. This set of vinyl sheets is of very good quality. The colors are very vibrant and eye-catching. There is a large variety of colors which is nice. The self adhesive makes it even better as there is no additional glue needed in order to attached them to the desired surface. When I tested it out, the adhesive proved to be very strong. You can rest assured that the vinyl will stay put.
For now, I am only able to cut it with scissors or a utility knife as I don't own a silhouette or other die-cutting machine. These sheets make me wish I did own one as the possibilities seem endless for what you can make. I made a very simple label for a jar. I wasn't paying attention to how I was applying it, and I didn't paste it on well. You have to start in the center in order to smooth it towards the outside to eliminate the air bubbles.
This is a great set of vinyl sheets that can be used for a variety of uses. These would be great for a project with kids and since there are so many available colors, choosing one shouldn't be too much of a problem. You don't need a die-cutting machine to use these, but it will allow you to utilize these sheets to their full potential. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Impossible to open caps. Alright, so not impossible, but three of us of different ages tried by hand and no-go! Had to use pliers and not just the first time. This is an obvious quality control issue and incredibly easy to fix at the factory, but that something so BASIC actually passed QC does not bode well.
They are essentially unusable. Due to other happennings in Life, we missed the deadline to return/exchange but, looking at other reviews, that might not have helped!
Why did they not track the batch with the fault and have a corrected batch ready to go to handle complaints? Why did they, according to their other reviews, ship replacements from the same defective batch! Unbelievable and a smear on their brand that will cost them more in the long-run. So, poor QC, poor customer service and poor logical thinking in the handling of the whole mess. Perhaps avoid all this company's products? | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
This is really fun! We bought this and 2 sets of the . This is really fun! We bought this and 2 sets of the pucks and 24 hours later we are hooked. It took a few tries to get the hang of how to best 'paint' a smooth surface with the melted wax. It takes several swipes with the tool, and remelting some of the wax on the card stock as you go (you can't use plain paper). But after playing around with it a bit, we are now having great fun creating cool color blends, and experimenting with different textures too. The pucks work well, but we are also using some beeswax crayons which have richer colors..they look even nicer, but in the long run will probably prove too expensive! Details are hard, you will be painting lots of swirly designs, flowers, patterns etc.... But for beautiful, multi textured super original-looking cards and pictures this will be perfect! We have many ideas. My son wants to decorate a small wooden box with it too, which we saw at a store where they sold them. Probably for children who understand the need for patience and trial and error with a new medium. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Cricut Explore -- A Cut Above the Rest. First off, I received a Cricut Explore in exchange for an unbiased, honest review of the product. I received my Cricut Explore in June, 2014.
Second, I also own a Silhouette Cameo and a Cricut Create. My husband purchased the Silhouette Cameo for me a couple of years ago. In my review you will see references to the Silhouette Cameo.
Third, I am not a highly-skilled craftsperson. I am run-of-the-mill scrapbooker and occasional card maker. I typically do projects that have been designed by someone else, however, I have been known to put together projects from scratch. I have experience with programs such as Silhouette, Sure-Cuts-A-Lot and minimal experience with Photoshop.
Since my review turned out to be rather long, I decided to put my conclusion first so that you could get the gist of my feelings towards the Cricut Explore and hopefully read the entire review.
Conclusion:
In the five months since Ive owned my Cricut Explore, I have created and finished more projects with the Cricut Explore than I have over the two years of owing my Silhouette Cameo. Given that, you can imagine how impressed I am with this machine. With the Silhouette Cameo, I wasted a lot of time and material trying to get my project adequately cut. Too often, I would have to cut and recut because the item could not be cut out cleanly. The Cricut Explore does such a spectacular job of cutting, that I often can complete my project with minimal effort, time, and material. It has revived my passion for crafting. I would also say that it has taken my hobby to a level that I never felt comfortable enough to venture into. With the Silhouette Cameo, I would never have felt sure enough with the ability of the machine to consistently cut out images/text out of iron-on vinyl for 30 t-shirts that were to be given away for a family reunion. However, with the Cricut Explore, I felt more than comfortable enough to attempt this type of project and am extremely happy with the results.
Cricut recently released a new version of Design Space (the online software that you use with the Cricut Explore) which includes the long awaited Print Then Cut feature. While I wasn't initially a fan of Design Space, this latest release has shown me that Cricut is diligently working towards improving Design Space and making it more user-friendly and reliable.
Despite having a full schedule as a college student, wife, and mother, Ive managed to complete quite a few projects using the Cricut Explore that Ive been really happy with. Some, but not all, of the projects that I have created and completed are: personalized t-shirts for a family reunion, various personalized wall hangings for my home and for my daughters apartment, personalized birthday presents and cards, personalized guest book cover, 3-D cards and boxes (the camera box from SVGCUTS greatly impressed my family of camera enthusiasts), and vinyl stickers for laptops and phone cases.
I am so impressed with the Cricut Explore that Ive considered selling my Silhouette Cameo. They both serve the same needs. The only thing holding me back is the money that Ive already spent on acquiring images through the Silhouette store. If I had a way to transfer my images from Silhouette to Cricut, then I would sell my Silhouette Cameo in a heartbeat.
I have gotten so many complements from friends and family after they have seen the projects I have created with my Cricut Explore. In fact, my husbands co-worker saw some of the projects that I had completed using my Cricut Explore. He did some research of his own and decided to purchase a Cricut Explore to give to his wife for her birthday.
First impressions opening the box:
My first impressions before I opened the Explore box was that the box was heavy. Amazon lists the product weight of the Cricut Explore to be 18 pounds, while it lists the product weight of the Silhouette Cameo to be 7 pounds. There are times when I take my machine with me to other peoples houses or for a weekend away. The weight would be of small concern, but certainly wouldnt prevent me from purchasing it all other things being equal. When I measured the Cricut Explore and the Silhouette Cameo, the sizes of the two machines were virtually identical (when closed). The width and the height of the two machines varied by approximately inch.
On the other side of the coin concerning the weight of the machine, I do feel as though the machine is solidly built. There are no loose fittings or flimsy doors on the machine. When I open the Cricut Explore up, the bottom door slowly opens rather than flop down with a thud.
Once I opened the box, I noticed that the Cricut Explore includes a carrying bag which was a nice surprise. With the Silhouette Cameo, I needed to purchase a separate cover or carrying bag to protect the machine. Because the Cricut Explore seems to be a bit heavy, I am a little concerned as to whether the materials of the carrying bag and the handle are sufficient to support the weight of the Explore long-term.
The other nice little feature Cricut added to the Explore is the built-in pen/tool holder located at the top of the machine and the integrated storage compartments located inside the front door of the machine. I am constantly losing my spatula, pen caps, spare blades, etc. I appreciate the added thought put into making my work area less disorganized and keeping my tools close at hand.
Also included in the box were the necessary cords, a very small sample of cutting materials (vinyl, cardstock, duct tape sheets, and iron-on), cutting blade, metallic marker, and a 12x12 cutting mat. It was nice to have everything I needed to experiment with the Cricut Explore without having to make another trip to the craft store or buy a package of craft material just to try it out.
After setting up and registering my machine, the first project I created was a Thank You card that can be found in Cricut Design Space (the online software used with the Cricut Explore). The creation of the card required the use of the Cricut Marker and the cutting blade. One of the things I appreciate the most about the Cricut Explore is that it can house the marker and the cutting blade at the same time. Once the project started, it didn't require me to stop the machine, replace the marker with the blade, and continue on with the project. With my Silhouette Cameo, I have to do the marker/blade shuffle, which doesnt seem like much, but sometimes Im just lazy enough to not want to switch the two out (yup, Im THAT lazy of a crafter).
There is a Smart Set dial on the Cricut Explore that allows you to set the cut settings with the twist of a dial. What I like most about this feature is that it also allows you to set custom settings and save them in Design Space so that you aren't fiddling with these setting every time you cut an image from a given type of material. Ive had my Cricut Explore for five months now. Most of my projects have been cut on various types of cardstock, paper, and vinyl. As of yet, I haven't had to customize a cut setting because the preset settings seem to meet my needs.
One other noticeable feature about the Cricut Explore when compared to the Silhouette Cameo is the amount of noise each machine makes when doing a cut. The Cricut Explore is quite a bit quieter (in my opinion) than the Silhouette Cameo. While neither machine makes an irritating or excessively loud noise, I have had my family comment on the noise level of the Silhouette Cameo, but not about the Cricut Explore.
The absolute BEST thing about the Cricut Explore is the preciseness of the cut. I have cut letters that are 3/8 high out of heat transfer glitter vinyl and was amazed at how easy it was to weed out the excess vinyl. With my Silhouette Cameo, I struggled to get that clean of a cut on certain types of cardstock let alone glitter paper/vinyl.
The German carbide premium blade that Cricut has design for use on the Cricut Explore is truly a premium blade. I cant say enough about this blade. It far surpasses the blades that I previously used on the Silhouette Cameo. It is a tad bit more expensive than the standard blade, but it is well worth the money.
DESIGN SPACE SOFTWARE
In order to use the Cricut Explore, you MUST have internet access. To access Design Space (the software that is used with the Cricut Explore), you log onto the Cricut Design Space website where you can design, create, cut, store, and share your projects. If you are thinking of purchasing a Cricut Explore, youll want to be sure that the requirement for internet access is ok for your given situation. The Silhouette Cameo doesnt require internet access in order to use the software or the machine.
Cricut just released a new feature with their Design Space software called Print Then Cut. This is addition was a huge step for Cricut and added a much needed feature to their Design Space offerings. This new feature allows the user to use Design Space to print an image on a printer and then use their Cricut Explore to cut that image out. I had used this feature quite a bit with the Silhouette software and was very excited to see that Cricut has added this feature to their lineup as well. Since its release just a few weeks ago, Ive had the opportunity to use this new feature and am very pleased with how easy it is to use and how precise the cut is.
Design Space also allows the user to easily import jpg and svg files. The best way to understand what this means is to go to YouTube and search for Cricut Design Space svg or Cricut Design Space jpg. While the Silhouette software allows you to do this as well, I found that the Design Space software was easier and faster to use, especially when working with jpg files.
Some of the other features that I really appreciate about Design Space are the paper saving feature and the separation of images onto different mats by color. The paper saving feature figures out how to best arrange the images to be cut so that there is minimum waste of materials (yes, this feature can be easily overridden). And, is extremely easy to change the mat color onto which an image will be cut to (ie: if you are cutting out an image of a hat, a shirt, and shoes on red paper, but you decide to cut the hat on blue paper).
The biggest reason I went with the Silhouette Cameo a couple years ago was because I didn't want to pay $20-$40 (sometimes more) for a Cricut cartridge, especially if I only wanted a handful of images off of that cartridge. Cricut has addressed that problem by including some of the images with the Design Space subscription ($9.99 a month or $99 a year). For instance, images in the Create a Critter cartridge are included with the subscription. If, however, you wanted to cut an image that isn't included in the subscription, such as the classic Belle and Beauty pose in the Disney Princesses Dreams Come True set, you could purchase the classic Belle and Beauty pose (one image) for $1.49.
If I had to find a weakness with the Cricut Explore/Design Space system, it would have to be with Design Space. It took me quite a while (two-three weeks) to become comfortable with the software. There wasn't a detailed Design Space User Manual available at the time that I was fumbling my way around. Since then, that has changed. Cricut has released a user manual that does a good job of explaining the features of the software. There are also great videos by Melody Lane, Kens Kreations, and Crafting by Two on YouTube that Ive relied on heavily to teach me what I need to know.
The second thing that I HIGHLY dislike about Design Space is that there is not an auto save feature. On one of the projects, I had spent hours working on the design and was just about done. Design Space then gave me some sort of cryptic error and my work was gone. Learn from my mistake, be sure to save, and save often, when working on your projects.
Speaking about cryptic error messages, there have been times when the software has had problems that were outside of my control. Occasionally, cryptic and irritating error messages such as Global Flex Error would pop up and prevent me from completing my project. While this doesnt happen often, it can, and does happen.
Other misc. info:
If this is your first die cutting machine, I would highly recommend that you have on hand the spatula and the scraper for removing the cut items off of your mat, and a German carbide replacement blade. These items are sold separately from the Cricut Explore. I would also recommend the Cricut scoring stylus which can be used in place of the marker in the Cricut Explore to create fold lines for all kinds of projects (I would have liked to have had this for the Silhouette Cameo).
Another accessory that I have enjoyed having is the wireless USB adapter. It allows me to connect my laptop or my iPad to the Cricut Explore without being tethered by a USB cable. This is really nice when my laptop/iPad is in one area of the room and my Cricut Explore is in another. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Does glow, packed fine, but sure not very bright. It did glow the described color but was just very unresponsive. It didn't charge very bright or very fast, a fraction of the brightness of Neutral Green Glow In The Dark Powder by Art 'N Glow.
By way of background, I purchased a bunch of different glow powder products off of amazon and tested them all together. Makes it super easy to see what's working best!
As a matter of fact, of all the glow in the dark powders/tapes I've tried from on and off of amazon, the Glowz Aqua Blue and Glowz Neon Green are the dimmest. They must be diluted with colored chalk.
They were packed well though, and they did glow if even very dim, so I gave'em a star. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
I do like the colors in this one better than the classics . These are worth it mainly for the tins. The watercolors themselves are very creamy to use but also very opaque, which can be a bit troublesome and limiting if you want brightly pigmented + transparent colors. I do like the colors in this one better than the classics tin, as the selection is less standard, and so a bit more interesting to use. One of the tins had a loose pan holder, but I just attached some small flat magnets (the sort often used with papercrafting) to it. Actually I placed these magnets on the bottoms of all the pans as well, this makes them stay in place better for travel, and also makes it easier to swap them between tins and other homemade travel boxes. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
only about 2 years experience under my belt I was super excited to try some higher quality brushes. As a beginner to water color painting, only about 2 years experience under my belt I was super excited to try some higher quality brushes. Embarrassingly I started out with brushes from michaels that came in a pack and were maybe 5$ max for the whole pack. When I started to paint more and dove deeper into it I purchased brushes that were specifically water color brushes and more expensive from hobby lobby. Now that water color painting has become a full blown passion for me and people are requesting me to paint them pieces I've been investing little by little into better quality utensils. These brushes have made all the difference in the world. They hold water instead of dropping . My old brushes use to drop most of its water and the first application of pressure. These are smooth and offer an exceptional amount of control. Great brushes - this pack in particular I feel is great for a beginner in size range too. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Just what you need for a large box mostly full of nothing. Almost everything in the box will fit inside the 2.5" in tube the vinyl is stored in, all except the instructional DVD. The suggestion book while well designed, is fairly vapid. Be certain to buy the Silhouette America - Silhouette Spatula as it is not included and is fairly essential. It will also complete your OEM toolset. The box is "pretty" and not flimsy, but 5X overly large - measure for yourself. It would be nice to see the packaging made more efficient for both saving resources and possibly allowing Silhouette to funnel the money saved back into including that Spatula, the last of their three tools, that border on essential. Of course, it's my thought those three tools should be provided default with the Cameo, Portrait, or other cutter. It strikes me as cheap to not provide all needed items to use what I purchase, and then nickel and dime for every single solitary item. Notice the four stars? That's because the contents of said box do in fact enable you to immediately tackle projects, so mission accomplished. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Very nice, but slightly impractical. These pulleys look very good, and were amongst the best that I have seen. However, the screw on them is so short that it is impossible to screw through any substantial material. They will hold through a piece of cardboard at the thickest. I was attaching these to a shelf bracket for decorative purposes, and since they will not be holding any substantial weight, I used epoxy, but these longer screws by Tim Holz: http://www.amazon.com/Screws-Tim-Holtz-Idea-ology-TH93051/dp/B009PADQIY/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1392940371&sr=8-4&keywords=ideaology+screw would have been useful. However, do note that these pulleys are not sturdy enough to hold any substantial weight. However, they suited my purposes well and I would purchase these again. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Sennelier Oil Pastels. These are incredible. It's literally like drawing with paint. The colors are incredibly vivid and rich, they apply beautifully (as I said, like paint) and if you invest a little bit of time in learning technique, finished products look like paint - with less time and frankly, a bit more fun. The pigments are also richer than most oil paints I've used, which is a plus. (You really can't get 24 high quality oil paint tubes for the price of this set). Overall, these are incredible and I highly recommend them. The only other oil pastel that truly gives them a run for their money is Holbein.
Beautiful colors, easy application, compatible with paper, canvas, cardboard (really, anything you want to draw on), and a beautiful finished result make these pastels a must-have for a pastel artist. I would even recommend these for a beginner (as I was when I first used them). You'll learn more and ultimately do better with high-quality pastels versus student or mid grade. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
This toolkit is great. I think you get a lot for the . This toolkit is great. I think you get a lot for the price. The spatula is great for gently getting under paper stuck to the mat and the scraper is great for cleaning the mat. I'm new to the silhouette world so I wasn't sure what the scraper was needed for, but the mat does get little bits of pieces stuck to it pretty quickly.
The tool for adding rhinestones and whatnot is helpful but there are no instructions. The tacky side has a cap on it that looks like it screws off, but it doesn't. It just pulls straight off. It took me using a pair of pliers trying to turn it after thinking it was stuck to figure that out! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Love the product, don't like the container. It would be 5 stars because I love the product so much, but man is this gallon size difficult! Hard to open (lift the tabs up with a butter knife, forget all the advice about screwdrivers, and then sort of flip the lid's rubbery edge upward), and awkward to pour from.
Even a square container would work better - at least you could pour into smaller containers more effectively without using a funnel or introducing a lot of bubbles.
I still buy this size because it is more economical and I use a lot. A bit of a pouring medium addict. To avoid bubbles, I usually pour it into smaller containers several hours ahead of working time. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
It has pentagons, why the heck are pentagons so hard to find. I have a 6 yo son who is crazy about geometric shapes: Spirographs, tesseracts, fractals, and the like. Do you know a kid who hand draws Sierpinski triangles? Well mine does. Anyway, one of his great frustrations is the lack of a template with multiple sizes of geometric shapes so that he can draw fractal shapes with decreasing scale - especially the hard to find pentagons.
After much searching I finally found this template with no less than 12 pentagons, plus all the other shapes. When I found this template I immediately ordered it. It had to come all the way from England, but arrived in a couple of weeks. Perfect gift for a week of good behavior at kindergarten. The kid was so excited he could hardly sit still enough to draw with it!
I deducted one star because I couldn't find the thing in The Colonies. Come on America, where is your sense of fractal pride? | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Chalk Markers. I was pleasantly surprised by how fast I received this product. I immediately opened the package and wanted to try out the marker. I was surprised to find that, in order to use the marker, you had to shake and push down the applicator tip to get the liquid going. This reminded me of pens that were popular in the 80's. I was a little frustrated by how long it took to get the liquid flowing since other markers of similar nature work faster. After the initial frustration, I tried out the markers on my cups and mirrors. Wow! The colors are bright and bold. Ink dries fast and is easy to remove especially off mirrors. I just used my hand to remove writing. My high school aged son wanted to see what I was doing so he tried out the markers. He ended up having fun using the markers on different surfaces. I would definitely recommend this product especially to teachers. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Nice stamp, worth the cost if you know you'll use it frequently. I'm giving this a five-star review because it is a lovely stamp, although the price of mounted stamps always makes me hesitate when giving one a high rating. I rarely buy mounted stamps, as the cost tends to be outrageous, but I bought this one when it was at some ridiculously cheap holiday price. This stamp is quite large and has a lot of detail - it'd be hard to miss it in your collection of wood mounted stamps. If you love the pattern and expect to use it a lot, it's one I'd consider buying even at full price. First, though, check your collection of unmounted stamps to make sure you don't have anything similar. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Lovely flow no loose bristles. I love brush pens and I am always having to buy them because I either use them till they wear out or I need a set to take with me on the go in my new travel case. I have other brushes that are pretty nice for the most part but I have some that leak or put out the wrong amount of water.. either too much or too little. These are fabulous. They come in the most common of blending sizes, the caps are easy to take off and put on, they are simple to fill from my tap, and they have no loose fibers at all.
I use mine with watercolor pencils and when I want a fine line of watery paint for outline or lettering. These put out just the right amount of water without being too juicy. I am able to blend my paint and my pencils with ease and I simply could not be happier. I recommend these highly for anyone who needs a reasonable priced set of water brush pens from your mixed media artist to your watercolor painters.
Overall I am very please with the amount of water I get, the way they blend, ease of use, and no loose fibers.
I have nothing negative to add at this time. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Small doilies perfect for cards . The perfect color for so many of my designer paper packs! I make a lot of hand-crafted greeting cards and I'm always looking for new/different embellishments. I've used a lot of white, gold, and silver doilies, but Doodlebug has a series of colored mini-doilies that are just the perfect size for my cards.
This "Cupcake" color is a nice soft pink and coordinates with all of my Doodlebug Designs patterned papers with a "pink" theme. They're small -- barely 3" -- probably not big enough to use as coasters if that's what you're looking for. But they're perfect to back a sentiment or flower on my 4.25" x 5.5" cards. And you get 75 of them! Really nice value.
I've purchased these in several colors and am thrilled. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great Set for the Price. These oil pastels are GREAT for beginners. You get a wide variety of colors at such a cheap cost. My sister is just starting out on these to color up some black and white printed paper she has so that we don't have to go buy a color printer instead. They are easy to use and the colors look great. Of course, these are very short so I suspect I will have to buy another set soon as backup. Definitely don't put a lot of pressure on them as they look easily snappable, but they are great for big pictures and blend well from what I've seen. It's definitely a great set for people who can't afford the more high quality branded oil pastels and to experiment with in case you want to see if oil pastels are something you want to continue using. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Shimmer me crazy. Ok, I know most of the reviews on this product are from artists and doodlers, I on the other hand are neither. For some strange reason I have to use glitter gel pens to do word search puzzles. So on that perspective, my review is a positive one. Colors come out dark and have a smooth roll with the exception of 1 pen that gets a little scratchy and the ink does not come out smoothly. It seems everyone received a dud pen or two but not a big deal to me. For $5, being short 1 pen is not an issue for me. If I doodled or drew, I think these would get the job done. Compared to the other pens listed on amazon, you get a little more bang for your buck. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Everything changed once I was helped by Matt and Ashish. There are several things that happened to me when my husband first purchased the Cricut Explore that made me very upset. But everything and every bad opinion I had about changed once I received a call from a rep from Cricut named Matt.
I received a new cricut fully updated from Matt and Ashish so all i had to do was plug in, sign in and go. And well let me tell you since receiving my new cricut I've done about 8 projects and thats in about 5 days.
Super easy and quick. Yes it does take a few times to get used to a few of the things. I actually cut the mat a few times with the wrong measurements but once i figured it out i was a champ. Mind you I'm not very creative but this has turned me into a guru.
Youtube has become my best friend since getting the cricut if i was ever stuck with anything youtube was my go to.
So many projects you can do in a day but so little time.
I've emailed Matt like if he was a friend I've known for years. Matt called me when i was at my lowest point with my first cricut that i was so upset with that I returned it but he assured me that that one experience is an experience i will never go thru again and he was right!!!! I have a new found appreciation for this machine. And thanks to Matt I learned a few new tricks.
Trust me when I tell you ITS AMAZING!!!!! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Set Up Prior when using with kids. These liquid chalk markers are so much fun. They are non toxic so safe for kids 3 and over. You can use them on many surfaces. I am most excited about chalkboards, whiteboards, mirrors and windshields! (Think about cheering on your favorite team member during the season! Getting started is easy but you may want to do before hand ignite you are planning to have kids use them. Its only for the first time, but you have to remove tip to release air, put cap back on and shake for 30 seconds, then hold the tip down to release the liquid. The tip is reversible so you can get different looks when drawing and theres a tweezer to use so you don't get messy. Just use a wet cloth and it easily wipes off. Very fun! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Tips and Suggestions Before Cameo Purchase. I am someone with a Graphic Design background and the fact that I did not know this machine existed until six months ago is truly shocking. I stumbled upon the Silhouette Cameo when researching how to make stickers for my Erin Condren planner. After some research I knew I just had to have this and my boyfriend purchased the starter kit for me off Amazon for Christmas.
I am BEYOND THRILLED with this machine and how many things it can do. So far I have used it to make scrapbook paper cut outs and signs for a celebration of life, to make favor boxes, to make a holder for my sketch pens and so much more.
That being said, DO YOUR RESEARCH before you pick which starter bundle to buy. In my excitement about this machine I just randomly picked a starter bundle and sent the link to my boyfriend. Hindsight 20/20, I wish I had really taken my time to comb through the dozens of starter bundles to pick the one that really had the items that I wanted with it.
The things I have used the most so far:
-Metallic Sketch Pens (These are amazing)
-The small spatula tool (You will absolutely need this, without a doubt)
-The extra cutting mat (I actually wish for larger projects that I had more than 2 so I could multi task better)
-Extra blades (You will need them, I promise)
I received the vinyl starter kit with my bundle but honestly I am so overwhelmed with just learning how to use the machine that vinyl is not even on my radar right now. I think I could have waited to purchase that later. I also have the marker holders, the sticker paper, and some stuff for making cards, all of which has not been touched yet.
Another tip for those designers out there, I bought this machine with the intention to immediately purchase Adobe Illustrator Connect because of my design background. I am so happy that I held off purchasing it and saved my $40. There are so many designs in the design store that are just $.99, my time is worth something and taking the time to design things myself that already exist seems kind of pointless. I suggest waiting on the connect software until you really dig into the Silhouette Studio software and all it can do. I was expecting that after using Adobe products for half my life that I would laugh at whatever "studio" Silhouette has to offer and I haven't, it is actually pretty impressive.
Overall this machine is the greatest gift I have ever received. I have already talked two of my designer friends into buying a Silhouette Cameo as well! | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
HIGHLY recommend, must try it out. I must say I absolutely LOVE this sketchbook. I have no idea why it doesn't have much reviews but I would like to give my input on my purchase.
I used to be a moleskine user but I just found the yellow tint to be rather bothersome to me. That is just my opinion though. Otherwise both sketchbooks are lovely. But to the actual review...
I love the size of the sketchbook. Moleskine is 5x8.25 whereas Leuchtturm1917 is 5.75x8.25. I like the extra width because I tend to doodle and draw big. Plus my hand tends to lie on the edge of the book, but with the Leuchtturm1917 it gives me just a tiny bit more room to rest my hand on. It may not seem like a big difference, but it was a preference that I am very into.
Another thing I love about this sketchbook is the paper. It is thick, holds ink well, pure white, and doesn't feather. In my experience with the pens and markers that I use it does not feather; however, I have seen people have different experiences on it. For me it is perfect. I never see ink bleed through unless it is an alcohol based marker (that is pretty typical tho), but it does not bleed to the point it will go onto the next page which is very nice. I don't have to panic when I forget to put a scrap piece of paper between the pages to prevent the bleeding. And it is pure white! Just how I like it. My colors will not alter or look different because it doesn't have the yellow tint. Although some people like to use white pens so obviously the white paper will not show it easily, but for me I only use white pens on areas I have colored so that isn't an issue.
The binding is AWESOME. I have no idea if the books are consistent because I only have bought one, but the current sketchbook I have lies flat on the table and the pages barely lift up. The only ones that lift a little is the previous page that I have already drawn on, but it is so little you can barely tell the difference.
I think the ONLY down side about this sketchbook is it's accessibility. Sometimes I would like to go to the store and just buy it on the spot. Sadly, the area I live in doesn't sell Leuchtturm1917 brand anywhere. The only thing that is similar like it is the Moleskine but I do not want to buy that. Thankfully amazon prime is a plus, but for those of you who do not have it I recommend purchasing it a few days before you finish your sketchbook so you have something to draw in before it arrives.
The price is not an issue for me at all. I know Moleskine (at least the 5x8.75 sketchbook) is cheaper than the Leuchtturm1917, but I find Moleskine's sketchbook qualities to be inconsistent and the fact I do not like the yellow tint. So I am more than happy to pay a few more dollars for something I love and will use all the time. Plus I tend to finish one sketchbook roughly around 2-4months so spending $24 every few months is not going to kill me.
I am more than half way with completing this sketchbook and with no doubt will buy another one as soon as I complete it. I hope this review gives you an idea about the sketchbook. If you do buy it I hope you love it as much as I do. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Markers and ink, good. Color pencils, not enough tooth. This sketchbook is a great size and the paper is okay.. I mean it's alright for sketching and light inking but I find it's way too thin and doesn't have enough tooth for colored pencils. I did try Copic markers and while it did go though the paper completely, I had a piece of watercolor paper behind it and none of the marker soaked though to that. So markers I guess do alright. I was thinking I'd try watercolors on it too, but yeah, I'd not trust it for that. But I bought this mainly to slide into my pencil case for quick sketches and some color pencil to throw colors on them. So I guess I'm feeling less than satisfied but I guess satisfied enough that I'll still be using it, just not how I had planned to. I guess markers and ink is pretty much all I'll be able to use it for. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Professional Looking Sign. I finallly got around to using this sign making kit sold by Rockler. My sign came out exactly as expected and it really was not that difficult. You just have to ensure that your router base plate opening is the correct size for the brass guide bushing. It helps immencely if the base plate is clear as well. This will allow you to see what you're doing. After purchasing several base plates that did not work, I just used a forstner bit to drill out several holes around the circumference of the bushing slot in an all black plastic base plate. It worked perfectly and provided me with sufficient visibility of the router bit. I wouldn't waste time hooking up any dust collection while routing your sign. Instead, just have a vacuum handy to suck up shavings after each letter is cut. Most importantly, go slow and be sure to shut off the router prior to lifting it off the template. It's also important to pay attention to what letter you're cutting so you know what direction you should be pushing/pulling the router. Go slow and you will end up with perfect signs. Prior to staining my signs, I painted the inside of the letters with black paint being careful not to get any paint on the face of the sign. If you do get paint on the sign, an orbital or mouse sander should clean up any paint you were not able to wipe up. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Don't expect too much. I ordered this set to ship out to an upcoming vacation spot so I would not need to take all my supplies on the airplane. The case is okay and the brushes seemed good enough although I did not get the chance to use them much to see how well they held up but there was a good variety to brush styles.
The disapointment came when I actually tried to paint with the paints. They were hard to open, the piercing part in the lid did not always work so you had to fight with it to mae the hole or othes it was too easy and ended up with paint squirting out everywhere. Most annoying was the white paint was the consitancy of elmers glue and had very little 'guts' to it. Needed almost the whole tube just trying to do an 8 x 10 painting as using it as an opaque was just about impossible. The yellow ochre was orange. At this point I gave up and needed a trip to the store to buy paints. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Cute But Only Partially Functional. I ordered a few of these when they were at a reasonable price. I assumed even if I did not use them or I received all the same design I could pass them along as little just because gifts. I was pleasantly surprised at the variety I received (cat, dog, alpaca, and pig). The design is random which to some degree is an exciting surprise.
I felt as if the sticker portion of the memo was not very sticky. They did not adhere well which decreased their functionality. Also, one of the printed designs was off center slightly (specifically the pig). The quality isn't anything special but It was appropriate for the price. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great Odd Angles. I got this so paintings/drawing would be easier to work on positioned at the angle of my choosing. Great design idea for an easel, re-positions easily, made with sturdy materials, and stores nicely under my the bed. Also the two holders can be unscrewed and repositioned - there are 5 holes total, 3 for landscape and 2 for portrait position.
Possible Challenges:
- Wood pivoting ball underneath might be a little wobbly but can be stabilized with wood glue - however you couldn't unscrew it afterwards if that's the way you'd store it.
- Surface can be tilted down to touch base, but overall height isn't adjustable.
- Socket must be very tightened to keep surface in desired position - thankfully tightening handle is easy to grasp and turn .
- Holders have a 5.25" gap in landscape and 6.25" gap in portrait position (too wide for what I was working on so I created trays to compensate)
- Only two holders provided - hopefully Daler-Rowney can be contacted directly for more - I didn't see it in the easel accessories on the their website.
Note: I'd buy it again if given the choice; the easel is unique and now excellent tool in my art supplies. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Just a superior product. I needed a new airbrush compressor (mine was vintage 1986 and on it's last legs), so I perused the offerings on Amazon passing up this $400+ Iwata. I purchased a 4 piston job from Airbrush Depot (TCP Global) through Amazon. Right now I will tell you that purchasing through Amazon gives you a lot of clout with second parties. The Airbrush Depot compressor had real problems as did a replacement one they sent. At this point I needed a compressor and paid the difference between the AB Depot and the Iwata. Do to the Amazon connection I got 2 day shipping and waived shipping charges. This Iwata was a little overkill, but I just wanted it to work.
It took me 15 minutes to get this great little unit working. Most of that time was opening the box and quickly reading the directions. It has been here for a month now without a problem.
First of all, it is quiet, quiet enough for indoor use. It is kind of hard to say more than it just does everything it should. The two regulators are great. I run an airbrush at 20psi and a spraygun type airbrush at 40-50psi, nice to not have to adjust between them. The case encapsulates most of the delicate components like air tubing and regulators. Since the compressor lives on the floor, it gets kicked or bumped into by anything from feet to carts and the shroud takes the abuse instead of the compressor. The compressor was provisioned with two Iwata Cobra 10 foot coiled hoses and quick disconnects installed on the hoses and the compressor. That's about $80 in Iwata parts right there. Made me feel a little better about the $400+ pricetag. There were also a bunch of conversion connectors for Badger and other airbrushes. I use Iwata and Veda airbrushes which use the 1/8 connector, but should I want to use something different, or have someone over that brings their own airbrush, I'm covered, they even labled the connectors for each make of airbrush, these Iwata folks are a class act.
Ok, so what's wrong with this compressor? I was going to say price, but you get what you pay for here, really. The tank (it is square, inside the case, and the compressor sits on top of it) is small, however big enough to run two airbrushes at once (yes I did test this). The compressor fills the tank very quickly (high output) so this isn't a problem, but I am used to a bigger tank with a longer time between compressor on cycles. I'll get used to it. The shroud, as I said before, covers up all the delicate stuff, but when you keep the compressor on the floor it is hard to see the regulators and just reach down and crank the regulator adjustment to set the pressure, because the gauges are tucked up under the shroud. I know, I know, but I had to say something negative or it wouldn't be a review.
Like all Iwata products, it is a little expensive, but it is a superior product.
Art | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Awesome Product. Paint Brushes:
These paint brushes were such a pleasant surprise. The pictures don't do the product justice, I thought I was getting like a elementary school grade brushes but what I got was a big surprise when they came in such a nice case and have awesome wood handles. They are so well made I couldn't believe how inexpensive they are for such a great brush.
My friend actually turned me on to adult coloring books to try as a relaxation therapy and I have been using paints instead of crayons and markers. The brushes have such great strokes and the fibers in the bristles haven't left anything on the papers which are great, some of the other sets I have used, after like 5 times start leaving the bristles on the paper which makes a mess. These are artist grade quality brushes and I feel under qualified to be using them. Again I cant believe how awesome the case and the brushes are cant wait to buy other Purple Needle products. They have a customer for life. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Great for kids or small adults. Purchased this for my daughter (Graphic design student) for Christmas to replace a standard desk. She is a little over 5 feet tall and needed something that was adjustable. Assembly was no worse than any other furniture. I have attached a picture of the hardware pack that came with this table as I haven't seen it done this way before. Each step had a separate pack of parts to keep you from having to guess at which item to use when. Absolutely great idea.
The unit I received had a damaged drawer and I had to drop it one star for that reason. Based on the packaging, I do not think it was damaged in shipment, I think it was damaged when it was placed in the box. While it wasn't a crucial piece for us, I will be contacting the manufacturer to get a replacement part and will update the review once I have completed the process.
Update 02/15/2015: I finally had a chance to contact customer service over the weekend. Turns out, they have a contact form on their site and have instructions for getting parts. To make it even better, they responded back within 24hours and will be shipping out the damaged part this week. I will update the review again once it arrives. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Possibly refurbished instead of new? Markers leave big blob of ink. As others have stated some of the markers leave a large blob of ink. I was almost done with a picture I was really happy with, then blob, ruined. However, let me stress that this is not a Copic issue. I have about 30 other Copic pens that Ive never had this issue with and Ive used them extensively. I believe this has something to do with the seller [SEIDONY]. I have a strong suspicion that these are refurbished, not new and am (obviously) very unhappy about it. Since the seller is in Japan its not easy to return them, which is probably what they're banking on. Ive read that if you remove the other end of the marker it will pressurize them.. strange Ive never had to do that with any other Copic marker. Needless to say I will not be buying from this seller again. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Fun chalk paint pen - a little patience required to get it flowing. Fun pen to draw on glass, mirrors and chalkboard. Lettering has been all over my social media feeds and I wanted to join in, and this was a good price point to get started. I overlooked the little images on the side of the pen showing how to get it started, but when I couldn't get it working right out of the box I I found the instructions on the Versachalk website so it all worked out. I'm not a good hand letterer (yet) but I've found using stencils or tracing a sheet of printed text or drawings under glass is a good way to get above average results with less than average skills. I wasn't sure whether I wanted the fine or bold version - I'm glad I got the the fine point because I like to make small drawings. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Quality white fabric paint, though there are some things to keep in mind. This was purchased for a cosplay I wore earlier this month and overall, I think it did a decent job at the task I had for it (which was painting on a black body suit to resemble a character's clothing) but there are a few complaints.
So, what are the positives? It performs well as a fabric paint, I haven't noticed any of the paint washing off or fading or anything like that, and like the bottle states, it dries pretty soft and flexible! But, there are some things to keep in mind.
First of all, this paint is able to dry softly because it's very runny and isn't the most opaque of paints. When using it, it's an absolute that there is a barrier behind the surface it's being put on because it can soak through fabric; I painted it onto a cotton/nylon bodysuit and it basically bled straight through to the other side. Also, if you want a truly opaque color payoff (as in a truly solid white shape with none of the fabric's color showing) with whatever you paint, you have to apply several layers of paint. I think this stuff works best if you want to be able to build up the coverage or use the fabric's color to create a certain effect with the paint.
Also, this stuff says "matte" and compared to the "slick" version, this does qualify as matte in that it doesn't look wet/shiny in the light and tends to not lay upon the fabric as heavily or allow for it to be as dimensional, but the color glacier is not 100% matte either. It is full of tiny, tiny bits of glitter that kind of give the paint a shimmery effect in some cases (which is probably why it's called "glacier." It resembles the sparkle of snow). It's not super noticeable, but the glitter is there and can be seen in certain lighting, especially if you do lighter coats of paint (the more layers you apply, the less prominent the glitter is, but a light layer on dark fabric is noticeable).
I think for most people's needs, this paint will do just fine. I personally did not find this particular type of paint to be the End All Be All for my project, since I had very large areas to cover with totally opaque shapes, but I suppose I should have realized that the "soft" version of the paint would be more runny and light in coverage in order to allow it to dry so soft. I don't fault the paint so much as I fault myself for expecting it to cover solid black fabric perfectly in one go, as if it were thick oil paint on a canvas, while still being super soft and flexible.
The price is a little much, but unless you're covering a lot of area in a lot of layers, this bottle should last for several projects! There is a smell to the paint, as well, but it's not especially strong or unpleasant (just kind of smells like paint, you know?) and I wouldn't say it would warrant an open window or masks or anything. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Eunectes Watercolor Paint Set with Travel case, Palette & Brushes. I've been wanting to try a watercolor set of paints ever since I rediscovered my "crafty" side, and have been holding out for a decent set at a fair price that would meet my, admittedly limited right now, needs. Eunectes happened along and offered me a chance to try and review their set, so I saw it as kismet and said "You bet!"
And I'm extremely glad I did. So far, this is a very high quality set with bright, rich, vivid colors that have extremely high pigments that absolutely ensure that whatever you paint is coated in a luscious wash of color. With 24 colors available in this set, there's nary a color combination you can imagine that you cannot produce. These Eunectes watercolors come up off the block easily and spread evenly for uniform coverage and saturation of color. The color blocks are first ground to fine powder and are "made from the best available pigments and gums" and are non-toxic, with conformance to ASTM D-4236 and EN71-3 standards. The included travel box ensures that you can store or transport your watercolors safely with no right of hihgly pigmented dust staining the floor or furniture, and the set even comes with a white mixing base paint, and plastic mixing palette, and a starter set of brushes so you're good to go and start creating the moment your Eunectes Watercolor set arrives!
A quick note, Amazon did it's usual atrocious packing job and a few of my watercolor blocks were cracked, as well as a rainbow of paint dust from jostling during shipping covered everything. Should you have the misfortune of getting Amazon's ubiquitous "Stupid Shipping Crew" treatment of your set as well, be sure you thoroughly wipe everything down beforehand with a damp cloth, because these are extremely high pigments and will very vividly stain almost anything it comes in contact with, possibly permanently. Overall I'm thrilled with the quality of this Eunectes Watercolor set, and I highly recommend this set for beginners and experienced painters alike.
I received the above product(s) free of charge from Eunectes. I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion. My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
As an artistic device I can see this being useful for aiding in creating different hand poses. I brought this mainly as a unique item to display as well as possible artistic use. It looks and feels well built. It's flexibility I feel can be limited depending from it's construction but it can still display a variety of poses. As an artistic device I can see this being useful for aiding in creating different hand poses. I ordered two, to be mounted on my work table. I plan on cupping these hands to hold a ball of colored yarn while I work. The yarn ball whirls around in the hand while I crochette little chubby cheek sweaters for children. They will keep my colored yarn separated and the fingers will keep the yarn free from tangles. If there are other crochete or knit artists out there, this is a fabulous find! As my little chubbycheeksweaters get more involved with more colors, I will be ordering more artist hands.
I recommend the wooden manikin too. I have one in which I dress up from time to time. This is also a great studio piece for fun and "flavor!" LOL! I received this item at a discounted price in exchange for my honest review. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
Excellent for a beginner, and a fairly nice additon to a professionals toolkit. As a traditional artist, I'm extremely used to using technical pens and brushes, so what drew me to this set was the brush pen that I would end up comparing to the one from Pentel. First of all, it's not bristles. The Pentel brush pen is way better, to be honest, but this one gives you a nice feel that isn't like the stroke of a brush. It's more like a marker that changes width by applying a tad more pressure to force that to happen. I have another set of these, and they seem really interesting, but I feel they should combine some pens from the two sets and make one. A few of these pens are unnecessary since they are a blind measurement away from the next, especially when working on a 11x17 art board. If any of the work you're doing gets shrunk down for print, there won't be hardly any difference, and those tips will eventually go bye-bye... so it's best to choose one size of the two (or three) and stick with it. .1, .3, .5, .7, .9 are old-school base sizes for that reason. These are interesting pens though, cheaper and more friendly than technical pens, and don't require a regular cleaning after a few uses. | arts-crafts-and-sewing_painting-drawing-art-print |
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